BOISE, Idaho — On the Fourth of July weekend in 2017, 1st Sergeant Erin Smith, her daughter, Autumn, and two others died in a tragic explosion at a rental cabin in Tamarack.
Smith's sister, Jessica Phillips, and her father, Michael Strong started the First Sergeant Erin R and Autumn McCall Family Foundation to financially help military families like Smith adopt children.
"She was a trailblazer, she was my baby sister but she was totally my hero," Phillips said.
Phillips says Autumn, who Smith adopted, was an "adventurer, she was like a mini-Erin."
Phillips and Strong say the foundation is something that Smith would be proud of.
"The foundation was a vision I had right after the accident," Strong said. "It was a thing that I thought we could do to make a positive out of a really terrible thing."
Smith's father said his daughter adopted Autumn after going through fertility treatments, which added a financial burden to the family.
"We learned that adoptions are horribly expensive and most military families cant bear that cost," Strong said. "So, we thought that could be a really good thing we could help with."
Sunday night, Strong and Phillips hosted an auction, which benefits the foundation followed by a charity golf tournament Monday.
"Tonight our goal is to raise 50,000," Phillips said. "Adoptions in Boise run about $25,000 and nationally they can be up to $45,000."
Phillips and Strong say the First Sergeant Erin R and Autumn McCall Family Foundation is the only one dedicated to helping military families adopt.
It's a cause that Phillips and Strong say will now forever be apart of Erin's legacy.